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'Knocking Shops'

Submitted by Benefitz Betty on Tue, 2018-06-05 05:40

'Fed up with always being in the slow queue? '

"Perhaps Benjamin Franklin said it best, in 1748: "Remember that time is money."

Whether it is lining up to pay for your groceries, making a bank transaction, or waiting for a table at a trendy restaurant, time costs money. As businesses become aware of the direct and indirect costs of waiting, they are looking at innovative ways to reduce these expenses by "designing out" queues...

'People are not ships' ... Unfortunately, unlike ships, people enter queues randomly, which creates a problem in providing optimal service. Companies cannot control this type of customer demand. For example, people don't consistently arrive at the supermarket checkout area in five-minute increments, with exactly six items."

"Corporate broking — where small teams of highly-connected individuals with close ties to the top brass in UK Plc vie to offer intelligence and strategic advice — is often done for free. Firms compete to act as a ‘trusted adviser’ for companies in the hope of being the bank of choice when they pull the trigger on a deal."

"“Welcome to Yorkshire are very supportive and Sir Gary Verity (the CEO of Welcome to Yorkshire) has been kind enough to write a letter of support, which is on the planning portal.” ...“It’s a hidden secret. It’s a beautiful site. The plan is to develop it out as soon as we get planning consent so we can assemble all the development funding. “The holiday homes will be effectively self catering. A lot of self catering people will obviously use local businesses. It’s got great potential.” A Welcome to Yorkshire spokesman said: ‘We are always happy to support our members in their ventures to create exciting new developments that will attract even more visitors to Yorkshire as well as creating more local jobs.” The application is due to be discussed by Scarborough Borough Council’s planning and development committee on June 7. Officers are recommending that permission be granted for the scheme, subject to the consideration of comments raised during consultation which included concerns about ecology and landscaping."

Meanwhile:

"Plans for a new Premier Inn hotel in Scarborough have been submitted. It's set to be situated on a vacant plot of land within The Sands development, where the Alpamare Waterpark currently sits. The report states the hotel would sit between the Generous George pub and the waterpark itself.."

“We’re seeing more pitches coming from companies which have not put their brokerships up [for rival bids] for a number of years,” said Kunal Gandhi, head of corporate broking at Barclays...“It’s viewed historically by some of investment banks as something of a cost centre despite its relationship value,”

Inn or Out?

K : B&B/Resident: The North Bay is a distinct area with a family feel. The PA obejctions include S106 & the alterations to car parking.

CM: PI are resubmitting their application. This will be a full new application

CM: In-hoc with Benchmark who have so far failed to deliver the Cinema

K : There is a question of validity. Benchmark is in default of S106 re Waterpark

R3: What about the PI 80+ bed extension at Huntriss Row. The facade looks like it is going to fall down.

R2: How can SBC allow another PI when they don't have a good record?

K : Do Benchmark need to complete what they are doing before adding further development?

R3: Is PI to abandon the town centre development?

CM: It will be next to fall down.

R1: It looks like it will fall down.. (The Old Conservative Club)

K: Research Scarborough Water Parks Ltd & their leasing arrangements with Benchmark ... do they have enough money?

R4 : Councillors & Officers are supposed to be caretakers of our land. This is our land.

R5: Will they discount tickets to the OAT & Water Park? (to out compete local business)

CM: This is nothing to do with the OAT.

R6: The current parking arrangements are for a visitors - a few hours. Not for a 120 bed hotel who will leave thier cars there during their stay reducing visitor car parking spaces.

R4 : The car park is 80% full off peak season - without the hotel.

R5: There is outline planning permission for a hotel. Nothing against hotels but PI's usual busines is commercial, not holiday visitors.

R6: What justification for another hotel? The Lysander/Manor Heath/Breece (many local hotels) have closed. Don't believe there are enough visitors in winter.

R7: Will there be an off season price war? Would local B&B's winter 'contractors' go to PI forcing more to close.

R6: Is part of the local plan to develop at detriment to local business?

R6: Will more B&B's convert to HMO's?

CM: Agree - too many local B&B's have turned into HMO's. Formerly family run businesses.

CM: How many present were owner operators?

K : Not just about business but local residents. (40:60) (operators: residents). Whitbread did not offer their presence known.

R1: A resident. The North Bay has its own environment & charm. This has been chipped away little by little. As a rate payer is very angry that SBC have allowed this.

CM : Democratically elected. ... SBC will do what they want.

R2 : SHA Committee were once told that 'SBC' only 5/6 B&B's were needed. Big hotels were easier to manage ergo three Britannia, one Travelodge & two Premier Inns.

K: Scarborough is a place for everybody.

R7: Scarborough is a tradiitonal sea side destination. A variety of accommodation is needed. Not all visitors want corporate hotels. Family focus is on entertainments & facilities. The corporate & family visitor hospitality need to start talking together.

R7: Is there a plan for tourism? It is going down hill. Too many day visitors... the environment is going down.

R8 : Consider Blackpool and how many B&Bs' have closed. What tourists need are facilities. The council does not listen ... ie Cinemas. The Council should be ashamed.

R9 : Business here have fought tooth & nail to avoid another Blackpool ie Stag & Hens. Many local small business here are family investments.

R10: Dual the A64? Is it easier to get in & out.

K: SBC must follow planning policy under the NPF. TOU1 should respect locality. There is also a need to reduce seasonality and offer tourism all year around.

R8: The North Bay is a haven for wildlife. Not an area for chopping down trees and an ongoing building site.

Culmulative Impact Assessment.

K: Benchmark are in Breach of S106 - a childrens play area - within two years of Alpamare opening.

R9: No forward planning. No confidence in Benchmark - they don't keep promises. the Cinema is not finished. Get rid of Benchmark. Is there a stipulation put in place 'no further developments' until promises kept.

CM: If you list some concrete questions SBC officers would be able to answer them.

R16: No money into Scarborough Town ... all going out of the area

K: Does the PA meet current criteria. Scale? What are the grounds to oppose new development. Is there sustainable economic growth?

CM: Presentations & petitions should be written individually. Local people need to get involved.

R2: Residents v the Council? Councillors should represent residents.

"Given their potential to bring in career-making transactions, long-standing corporate broking relationships can be hard to dislodge. But after a lull in recent years, a number of factors are spurring more broking clients to move,.."

""For a sector associated with staid British traditions, there’s a renewed sense of American-style sharp-elbowed competition among investment banks’ corporate broking teams. Larger investment banks are circling smaller rivals as the shake-up from the second Markets in Financial Instruments Directive, introduced in January, upends the broking world..."

"Mick de Brenni visited the Kirra Beach Tourist Park on Monday and met with permanent residents who have been told by council they will be phased out of their homes over 10 years to make way for tourists. "All the residents I met were elderly pensioners, and they're desperately worried about where they're going to live in the future," Mr de Brenni told AAP. "Many don't have much family around at all, and there are limited options for them to move - they just deserve some security over where they're going to live." He said the residents were experiencing "crippling anxiety" with many having invested hundreds of thousands into their homes. He also questioned council's motives behind the decision, suggesting they could be making way for a future development. "The question I think that council needs to answer, is this about making the park more profitable, or is there some other motivation?," Mr de Brenni said. "Is this about developing this land into something completely different - do they have plans for a shopping centre, or something else?" A Gold Coast City Council spokesperson rejected these claims and said the decision is about tourism growth for the Gold Coast. "This is not true. The park will be returned to a true Tourist Park as its name suggests," the spokesperson told AAP.

"This will also allow the site in the long term to be made potentially available for the benefit of other community uses."

"“To me it is amazing that we can show we have organic matter preserved for more than 3bn years in these rocks,” said Kirsten Siebach, a planetary geologist who was not involved in the work at Rice University in Houston, Texas. “This is very promising for the preservation of potential ancient life on the planet.”

"“These molecules could have been part of life, but they could also have been food for life,” Siebach added. “To know that the water really was full of organic molecules really opens up the different ways that life could have existed on Mars.”...

"The discovery of organics in rocks mere centimetres beneath the Martian surface has raised hopes of finding richer deposits of the compounds deeper down...

"Before the rover touched down in August 2012, missions to the red planet had already spotted methane in the atmosphere which spiked from time to time as plumes of the gas apparently rose from the planet. The discovery fuelled speculation that the gas might be the expulsions of Martian microbes eking out an existence deep underground. More mundane explanations included chemical reactions between water and Martian rocks.

"“These subsurface reservoirs could be from ancient methane that was trapped underground, or from methane that is forming today. Either way it could be produced by chemistry or by microbial activity. We certainly cannot rule out a biological source at this stage,” said Webster.

Taking the measurements was no easy task. A year on Mars lasts two Earth years, so to spot a seasonal pattern in the methane levels, the scientists had to take readings for four Earth years. “That’s why it has taken us so long,” said Webster. “Talk about having patience.”

"Earlier this week, we told you how developers Benchmark Leisure was changing its plans. The original idea was for a seven screen cinema, but it's now planned to be five or screens with more residential apartments.

Benchmark Leisure also says it wants the complex open by the end of summer 2019. With a number of high street franchise restaurants getting into financial difficulty recently, the developers have now chosen centre the project around local chains.

It's not the first time the proposed opening date for the development has been moved. It was originally set to be ready by Easter 2018 and then at the end of the last year, we told you how a new date had been set for Easter 2019.

Some works were carried out on the complex, on the former Atlantis site in January 2017, but there has not seemingly been any work on the area since..."